Secret Garden Party. “It’s so much about the surreal
elements here – about building a weekend that takes
people away to another land.”
Are there any other festivals that Michael feels the
need to keep up with? “No way!” He says. “They’re trying
to catch us up, aren’t they?” It’s clear he’s as driven and
enthusiastic about ideas for further innovations at
Glastonbury as he is about its colourful history, but
who’s on his wish list for the future?
“
Well, there’s the Stones,” he says laughing, a
knowing twinkle in his eye just weeks before the band
are actually announced as this year’s star turn. “We
haven’t had the Stones yet, have we? The Grateful Dead
would have been fantastic too, but it never happened,
unfortunately; Fleetwood Mac with Stevie Nicks, and
Bob Dylan,” he continues. “We’d love to do Prince and he
wants to do it now, so maybe next year.”
And what does Emily think? “Beyoncé [in 2011] was a
really amazing performance,” she tells me, “one of our
greatest moments. That was really precious and nowwe
have to do something a bit different. It’s part of our
responsibility to create headliners.” Indeed, in a crowded
UK festival scene, Glastonbury remains the mothership
and the byword for the great British good time.
“
Our biggest job is protecting the integrity rather
than trying to sell out the following year,” she concludes.
“
There are so many people who’ve been here for a really
long time and a lot of those people have their children
working on it. There’s a real family element and that’s
something we want to protect.”
*
FOR T&CS SEE P187
Glastonbury
need to know
(
800
)
Number of stalls at the festival, selling
food, wellies, T-shirts and more
(
32
)
Weight in tons of the roller used to flatten
the farm land to prevent twisted ankles
(
750,000
)
Amount in gallons of the lagoon that
stores the sewage before it’s taken away
easyJet
flies to Bristol from 46 destinations. See
our insider guide on page 141. Book online
at easyJet.com
easyJet Holidays
Two nights room only at the four-star
Novotel Bristol Centre, departing
Newcastle on 3 June, costs from £129 per
person. easyJet.com/holidays*
THE KEEP
Just half an hour fromWorthy Farm, this
Yeovil hotel's boutique rooms have comfy
beds and free wi-fi. hotels.easyJet.com
OUR BIGGEST JOB IS
PROTECTING THE
INTEGRITY RATHER
THAN TRYING TO SELL
OUT THE FOLLOWING
YEAR. THERE’S A REAL
FAMILY ELEMENTWE
WANT TO PROTECT
Emily and Michael
by the Pyramid
stage frame
0 7 0
F E S T I V A L S P E C I A L
G L A S T O N B U R Y
